It’s too early to say Bryant can’t check Westbrook. I’m not about to bet against one of the greatest players ever to play the game. But when Westbrook is ducking behind ball screens and swishing his mid-range shot and slicing through L.A.’s pick-and-roll coverage and setting up teammates as he was tonight, he’s virtually unstoppable. Good luck to whomever has to cover the Honey Badger at that point.
Westbrook’s final line: 27 points, seven rebounds, nine assists, two steals, one turnover, 10-of-15 shooting.
You read that right. Nine assists. One turnover. That was easily the most impressive aspect of Westbrook’s performance tonight. He was under control. He displayed great decision-making. He played with terrific pace. And he didn’t force anything all night. He took what was there and his assist-to-turnover ratio bears that out.